The 2026 FedEx Cup Playoffs are here, and the first leg of the playoffs starts with the FedEx St. Jude Championship. Unlike full field tournaments, the PGA Tour has created a unique final stretch run for the game’s best players.
For the St. Jude Championship the top 70 players make the field. It is a no cut event, but only the top 50 will qualify for the second leg, the BMW Championship next week. After that tournament only the top 30 qualify for the Tour Championship at East Lake.
It all starts with the St. Jude Championship, and you’ll see the best players in the game in the field this week. It might not have the feel of a major tournament, but it will certainly be worth watching.
Let’s take a look at the details of the upcoming St. Jude Championship:
- Dates: Aug 13-16, 2026
- Location: Memphis, Tennessee
- Course: TPC Southwind
- Course Details: Par 70, 7,288 yards
- Field: St. Jude Championship Field
- Total Purse: $20 million
It’s still important to take a look at the past winners of this event:
St. Jude Championship Past Winners
- 2025: Justin Rose
- 2024: Hideki Matsuyama
- 2023: Lucas Glover
- 2022: Will Zalatoris
- 2021: Tony Finau
Let’s take a look at pre-tournament winner odds:
2026 St. Jude Championship Odds
- Scottie Scheffler (+450)
- Rory McIlroy (+1000)
- Cameron Young (+1800)
- Xander Schauffele (+1800)
- Tommy Fleetwood (+1950)
When it comes to picks for this event, I’d start with my favorite and long shot picks. The favorite pick is the winner pick I like the most. For the long shot winner, that is a golfer who has over +2000 odds to win. It is a long shot pick for a reason, and finding those can be like finding a needle in a haystack.
Here are my favorite and long shot picks for the 2026 St. Jude Championship:
Favorite: Scottie Scheffler (+450)
Long Shot: Viktor Hovland (+3600)
I’ve said this a lot this season in these prediction articles, but I stand by it. Scottie Scheffler is too good to not win more tournaments. Unfortunately, Scheffler is running out of time, and only has one tournament win to his record this season. I believe Scheffler will be able to claim victory at some point during the FedEx Cup Playoffs, and why not at the St. Jude?
My long shot play at one time was an educated guess as to who might perform well on that specific course, etc. However, I’m turning this into a “gut pick”. This tournament has often been won by a lesser-known player, and I’ll go with Viktor Hovland this week as my long shot play.
Top 5 Bets For The St. Jude Championship 2026
- Rory McIlroy (+200)
- Scottie Scheffler (-106)
Depending on how Rory McIlroy plays at TPC Southwind, I may or may not stay away from him outside of majors. It makes you wonder if Rory is now a “majors only” type golfer who doesn’t have the desire to play, and win, these lesser tournaments on the schedule. We’ll see how he does in Memphis.
If Scheffler doesn’t win, it is a safe bet he’ll be near the top of the leaderboard. I don’t like negative odds in golf betting, but I’ll take Scottie Scheffler at -106, nearly even odds, in a way to hedge our outright victory prediction.
Top 10 Picks For The St. Jude Championship 2026
- Colin Morikawa (+200)
- Ludvig Aberg (+190)
It feels as if Morikawa is finally healthy, and starting to play at the level most expected of him when the year began. Morikawa, when he’s on his game, is one of the game’s best players, so getting +200 for a Top 10 finish with a limited field felt like an easy pick.
I’ve been weary of betting Aberg since his collapse at the Players Championship earlier this year, but I have a hunch Ludvig will return to form. I’m not asking for an outright win, but just a Top 10 finish. We haven’t seen Aberg in a couple weeks, so hopefully he is rested and back on top of his game.
Top 20 Value Picks For The St. Jude Championship 2026
- Rickie Fowler (+150)
- Wyndham Clark (+132)
I was rather surprised when I saw Wyndham Clark getting +132 odds for a Top 20 finish. Clark, while struggling after the Open Championship, is still one of the better players on tour this year, so I felt it was an easy pick to make. Hopefully Clark gets back to his winning ways.
My “gut pick” of the week, outside of the long shot play, is Rickie Fowler. Fowler has slowly put his game back together and qualified for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. Fowler has been playing great golf, and a top 20 finish at +150 felt like a smart play in this limited field event.
Best Prop Bets, Parlays And Bonus Plays For The 2026 St. Jude Championship
For bonus plays, these are picks which I don’t necessarily hang my hat on, but still provide value for some who want more exotic plays outside of the aforementioned picks. Sometimes bonus plays are parlays, double chances, triple chances, and even some fun plays for that particular event.
Here are the bonus plays for the 2026 St. Jude Championship:
Big Guns (+110) vs. the Field: Scottie Scheffler, Rory McIlroy, Cameron Young, Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood, Sam Burns, Matt Fitzpatrick, Ludvig Aberg to win
Margin of Victory: 2 Shots (+355)